[Trials of anti-HIV vaccines on newborns?]

Since the beginning of the HIV/AIDS pandemic approximately 30 million people have been infected with HIV of which approximately 20 million are in Africa and Southeastern Asia. Approximately 3 million newborn infants have been infected in Africa alone. While considerable progress has been achieved in developing therapies against HIV and AIDS the tritherapy currently used in the West is too expensive for most regions of the world and cannot be considered as a long-term solution. Africa and Asia need an effective vaccine against HIV/AIDS. The author discusses the lack of vaccine research current research progress efficacy trials and clinical trials involving newborns. Trials of experimental vaccines hold risks regardless of the age group involved in such trials. While it can be very difficult to verify the efficacy of a candidate vaccine high levels of antigenic variation and the lack of data on immune system cofactors make it even more difficult in the case on an HIV/AIDS vaccine. Efficacy trials with a large number of candidate vaccines can be key but such an undertaking can be pursued only using populations of high HIV incidence in which a short follow-up period will suffice. Populations of newborns to HIV-infected mothers meet these criteria while the benefits of the potential subjects receiving AZT therapy can go far in compensating for any trial-related risks.